It Could Have Been Me
by CriminalMinds.GreysAnatomy
Summary: When JJ is stressed because of a case in which the victims where almost identical to her will one of her closest friends finally act on their feelings?
1. Chapter 1

That night had been a particularly had night for Jennifer Jareau, considering all of the victims were around her age, around her height, and had blonde hair. "What if I had been targeted?" This thought raced through her mind all night. All day before they had caught the unsub. "It could have been me." She tried to push all thoughts from her mind. But it was near impossible. So she kept thinking about it. All night.

Emily Prentiss was one of JJ's best friends, though she and JJ both wanted it to be something more, and had noted that the blonde had been distant for the whole case. She had tried to talk to her but JJ just brushed her off, telling her, "I'm fine." When Derek had invited them out to drinks JJ had declined and retreated to her car rather quickly. Emily, still curious of what was going on with her friend, went after her. She followed JJ to the hotel they would be staying in for one more night before going back to Quantico the next morning. When JJ slipped into her room Emily noticed a wetness on her shoulder. After knocking on JJ's door the blonde slowly opened it. "Emily?" Without being invited in the black haired agent walked into the messy hotel room. "What's going on with you tonight?" Emily asked her. JJ sighs and sits down on the single bed. She starts to talk, "Blonde women being killed, my height, around my age, I easily could of been the next target. The next victim. What if I had been killed?" Emily shakes her head.

She looks at JJ and says, "You always have your gun, he couldn't have gotten you." Emily sits beside her friend. Jennifer was convinced that she could have died despite Emily's attempts to calm her. As JJ was rambling on about blondes Emily pressed her lips to JJ's to quiet her. When Emily pulls back JJ's eyes are wide with surprise. "W-why do that?" She asked. Emily shrugs her shoulders. Jennifer forcefully grabs Emily's cheeks and pulls her lips back onto her's which causes Emily to inhale sharply at the sudden change of position. When both of their tops had come off they had yet to acknowledge the knocking on the door, Emily had been too distracted feeling JJ up. When JJ moaned at Emily's touch the knocker must've thought it was a invitation into the room. "Oh my G-" the women heard someone say behind them. Both of their heads turn to the doorway to find their boss, Aaron Hotchner. He turns around. "I came to check on JJ," he says quickly. "I'm gonna go now." And then he leaves. They turn back to each other. "That was uncomfortable," the black haired agent laughs. "Agreed." 


	2. Chapter 2

Emily woke up early the next morning, JJ ,one who liked to sleep, lay beside her. Emily cautiously rose from the bed, careful not to disturb the woman she had woken up next to. She silently puts her clothes on. Fortunately JJ had gotten the room that had one bed, so she was the only one who would usually sleep in the room. She quietly leaves the room only to find Derek outside, who seemed to be waiting. "Leaving JJ's room?" he asks. Emily looks around nervously. "It's about time," he continues. "What?" she asked, obviously confused. "Have you seen the way she looks at you? The way you look at her?" he asks, leaning against the wall. Emily sighs and looks him in the eyes. "I should get back to my room," She says, looking away and starting towards the room she was sharing with Spencer.

She slips the key card into the lock and turns the door handle, not bothering to look back at Derek. When she entered she saw Spencer on the bed closest to the door ,to what a normal person would seem like skimmimg through a book but to the team, was reading. He looks up at her, "You never came back last night." "I was uh busy," Emily replies, walking to the vacant bed. She sighs and sits down on the bed.

Reid studies her actions for a few minutes. The way she couldn't decide which postion to lie in, they way she stared at the ceiling with a vacant look, how she sighed at least once every twenty seconds. "What's wrong?" the young profiler asks. Emily looks over to him. "Nothing. Noo thing," she replies, turning her head back to the ceiling and pronouncing the second 'nothing' oddly. There were two knocks on the door before it opens. Then Hotch pokes his head through the door, "Wheels up in thirty." Emily sighs yet again and stands up, along with Spencer. She picks up the single bag she had brought with her and exits the room, following a majority of the team outside to the cars.

The team loaded onto the jet, Spencer still curious of what was wrong with Emily. He noticed that she sat in the corner of the plane, earbuds in her ears and head rested on the back of the seat, eyes closed. 'Something is wrong,' he thought in his mind. He continued to watch her. Noting every move, face, or emotion that ever showed up.

Derek sat down next to Emily and pulled an earbud from her and stuck it in his own ear, only to find that metal music was playing. He took it out looked to her, still in the same position she was when he sat down. "What the hell is this?" He asked, holding the white earbud up. "Music," Emily replied, still not opening her eyes. Morgan shakes his head. "You know Pretty Boy's been stalking you." "Mhmm," she says. Derek rolls his eyes and returns the bud back to her ear. He stands and retreats back to his original seat.

JJ, who had fallen asleep, sat there peacefully. A slight jostling awakens her. When she pops open her eyes she finds Spencer. "We're back," he states. She stands up and looks around, seeing that everyone else had already left. She sighs and exits the plane with Reid.

Emily sat on her apartment's couch, her feet propped on the table and the TV blaring on. Though she rarely drank, she was now. And when she drank, she drank a lot. She held the vodka bottle in her hand, taking an occasional swig. She knew what had happened the night before was a one time thing so she pushed all her emotions down, something she had done all her life. The sadness had overcome her body but she shoved her thoughts about JJ aside and focused on the alcohol she had in her hand.

She was interupted by the ringing of her phone. She slowly brought the device to her ear. "Hello?" "Prentiss, we need you over here. Urgent case," was all she heard before Hotch hung up. She knew she couldn't drive in intoxicated state and probably shouldn't even be working but she called a cab anyway.

When arriving at the BAU Emily had sobered very little. She staggered inside the conference room, and she had decided to not say anything so she wouldn't give away her drunken state. She was surprised they already had another case. As JJ presented the new case Emily stared at her, just watching her movements, not listening to a word she said.

The team always had an extra bag packed if they had to work two consecutive cases, so they had grabbed them and once again got on the jet. Except this time Emily sat in the corner, eyes closed, moving her head side to side to the music that wasn't playing. "Emily," someone whispered in her ear. Emily snapped out of the trance she was in amd turned her head to the side. "What?" she asks.

The rest of the team had gathered on the other side of the jet, watching as Emily talked to herself. Rossi asks, "What is she doing?" "I think she might be talking to herself," JJ replies, keeping her eyes fixated on the black haired profile who seems to be conversing with someone. "JJ!" she calls. JJ slowly walks over to Emily. "Are you okay?" Jennifer asks. Emily smiles at her and replies, "I seem to be a little drunk." "Your drunk?!" JJ exclaims. She slightly nods. JJ sighs and sits beside her.

Emily rests her head on JJ's shoulder. "I'm tired," the intoxicated woman whispers."Go to sleep." She closes her eyes and slowly is pulled into unconciousness. 


	3. Chapter 3

Emily was later informed of the case, thirteen year old girls were being killed. Stabbed many times to both arms and legs and dumped in garbage bins. "The unsub seems to have a type. Brown hair, hazel eyes," Derek noted. Hotch started lookimg through some of the pictures. "There was a lot of over kill too." Derek and Emily lean over the latest crime scene body that had just been pulled out of the trash can. "There are exactly thirteen cuts on both arms and both arms," he says. "So extreme OCD? The first kill was an accident and he can't stop until he kills thirteen?" she ask. He nods and writes it down in a notepad. "He's probably in his mid thirties based on his victim's age. Small build. May be on medication for the OCD that he's recently been taken off of. He may work in the education system," Derek says. "That would give him access to the children," Emily poimts out. "How many victims are there?" She asks. "Four," Derek replies."If we don't stop him there will be nine more."

Once they get back to the police department with the rest of the team, Derek and Emily presented what they had discovered. "Its like that with all the other victim's too," Hotch said, avoiding eye contact with both Emily and JJ. "Prentiss, Rossi, go to the school, see if you can fimd anything out of the ordinary," he commands. They both nod and walk outside. "To the school we go," David says, climbimg into one of the black SUVs.

"He would be skinny with an extremely organized room," Emily tells the prinicpal of the nearest juinor high school. "There are a few teachers like that," she replies. "He would get very agitated if you were to move something in his classroom," Rossi says. They had just released the profile and press conference. The woman thinks for a second before answering, "There is one teacher like that, I don't think he's here today though." "What's his name?" Emily asks. "Howard Coe," she replies. Emily quickly dials Garcia's number. "Penelope Garcia's house of 'How May I Save Your Ass Today?'." "Garcia, get me everything you got on a Howard Coe," Emily says into the phone. "Zilch." "Damn it," she mutters. "Wait. When he was fifeteen he was put in juvenile detention for assault." Emily nods and says, "Thanks." Then Penelope hangs up. "Anythimg?" Rossi asks. "Assault when he was fifeteen," she replies, "We need to check his room and get him to P.D." They both nod and get directions to his room. They walk slowly into his classroom. "Mr. Coe put your hands were I can see them," Emily commands him. The children look in horror as David cuffs him. Emily opens the first drawer she finds. "Rossi you need to see this," She says. He leaves Coe on the wall and walks to where Emily is standing. In the drawer there is a knife along with thirteen photos, four of which have an X drawn across them in blood. "We need to get these to the lab and see if this is the victims blood," Emily sighs. Rossi reads off Howard's rights as he puts him in the black FBI SUV.

"The lab results came back," JJ says, watching Coe through the glass. "And?" Emily asks, turning her head towards her. "It was their blood. I just told Hotch, they'll be putting him into a cell any minute." Emily nods and turns her head back to the man who had killed four girls. "Do you ever get sickened by this job?" She asks."All the time," JJ replies, "This was a fast case, less victims." Emily nods in agreement. After a few minutes of complete silence JJ says, "It wasn't supposed to happen like that." "What?" Emily asks. "Last night at the hotel. It wasn't supposed to happen like that. Not with me scared because I could of possibly been killed. It was supposed to be special or something. Me confessing my undying love for you and then taking you to dinner was jow it was supposed to be. Not me having sex with you and then you sneaking out the next morning."

Emily sighs, "Nothing ever goes the way you plan them to." "Them let me confess my undying love right now and then take you to dinner. Like properly." Emily turns to JJ and leans against the wall. JJ closes her eyes for a second and takes a deep breathe, almost as if deciding whether to do what she was about to or not. "Emily," she starts, "You drink when you're stressed, and you distance yourself from others. And I think you're crazy when you and Reid are talking about books. But I love you." Emily smiles. "I love you too." 


End file.
